BACOLOD CITY – Mayor Greg Gasataya urged media practitioners and broadcast management to exercise greater responsibility in public communication, following controversial rape remarks made by a local radio anchor during a live broadcast that sparked widespread online backlash.

In a statement released Friday, May 22, Gasataya said treating sexual assault as humor reflects “a failure of empathy and a betrayal of civic trust.”

He stressed that rape and sexual violence should never be reduced to jokes, especially during discussions involving abuse cases. "The trauma of sexual violence must never be reduced to a punchline," he said.

Gasataya revealed that he personally spoke to the management of K5 News FM Bacolod which have since compelled broadcaster Jean Paul Generoso to issue a public apology, answer a Notice to Explain, and suspended following evaluation.

Gasataya, a former broadcaster, emphasized the influence media personalities have on the public and the responsibility that comes with it.

He said media platforms should promote respect and sensitivity rather than contribute to harmful attitudes toward women.

Gasataya underscored the importance of protecting women in all spaces in compliance with the Safe Spaces Act and the Bacolod City Bawal Bastos ordinance.

He said the city government stands firmly against statements or actions that normalize or trivialize rape and violence against women and reaffirmed support for victims seeking assistance.

The controversy stemmed from a May 20 broadcast in which Generoso was speaking with a female field reporter covering a child abuse case.

While discussing the suspect’s detention, the broadcaster joked that he also wanted to go to jail and repeatedly asked the reporter on air if he could rape her so he could be imprisoned as well. Hours after the broadcast, Generoso publicly apologized and admitted his remarks were inappropriate.